Snow, ice, wind, storms, floods, fog - the winter season can bring a host of extreme weather which can impact on all transportation networks. As such, there is an obvious need for regular weather forecasts and updates (i.e. for informing gritting routes, applying speed restrictions etc).

Roads and railways are extremely vulnerable to extreme winter weather, yet they are integral to everyday life.

A Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) event has taken place, resulting in the split of polar vortex in two vortices which may impact our weather later this month (there is a lag time between an SSW and the impact it has on UK weather).

A SSW of the atmosphere refers to a rapid rise in temperatures in the stratosphere (which is found at an altitude of 10 km to 50 km) when the temperature can rise by up to 50°C over a couple of days – and this often leads to cold conditions across the UK.

By Adam Corner*, Research Director at Climate Outreach, and an Honorary Research Fellow in the School of Psychology, Cardiff University.

Over the last decade, the level of interest in climate change communication has grown rapidly – there’s now a huge number of people, organisations and institutions involved in the theory and practice of public engagement.

About theWeather Club

theWeather Club is full of interesting and educational content that captures the many faces of the weather – its beauty, its power, its occasional absurdity and its fragility in the face of human activity.